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Jlbrabam Lincoln.^ 


KANSAS COMMANDERY 

OF THE 

MILITARY ORDER OF THE LOYAL LEGION 

.2p1he_UN1TED states. 


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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 


A PAPER 

Prepared and Read Before the Kansas Commandery 
of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion 
of the United States. 


Companion Maj. J?^G. ROWLAND, 


lOth Illinois Volunteer Infantry^ Governor Western Natioiial Military Home, 


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AISKAHAM LINCOLN, 


Read before the Kansas Coinmandery, Military Order of the Loyal Legion of 
the United States, May 3, 1900, by Major J. G. Rowland, Tenth Illinois 
Volunteer Infantry, Governor Western National Military Home. 


Companions: —We who have lived in the past half century have 
seen such a wonderful development in every department of human 
effort that we have become accustomed to a growth—an advance¬ 
ment—which is in fact phenomenal. 

We do not realize what a change has taken place in the status of 
the individual citizen, as well as in our strength and importance as 
a nation, and what has been accomplished in all that can make men 
wiser, better and happier, until we compare the conditions of fifty 
years ago with the conditions now. 

The great man who was most influential in bringing about these 
changes in our own country, in establishing political liberty, and in 
securing vigorous national life — one'Avhoin we all revere — stands 
conspicuously above all, a figure, heroic and simple; grand, yet un¬ 
adorned; the homespun lawyer of the prairies; the martyred Presi¬ 
dent, Abraham Lincoln. 

Thirty-five years ago the great tragedy which shocked the world 
took him from life. It is a fitting time, near tiie anniversary of that 
grievous loss, to remember him anew, to dwell upon his great deeds, 
to recall his lovable traits, and his eminent, if homely, personality. 

Abraham Lincoln was born a poor boy, of humble iiarentage. 
His home was in the wilderness, a cabin of the pioneer type, rough 
and primitive. 

Referring to the coming of his father's second wife, a late writer 
says of Abraham, when he was about eleven years old: “When he 
crept down from the garret where he slept on his mattress of dried 
leaves, under his blanket of skins, stepping cautiously upon the pegs 
driven into the wall, (the only steps which led from his loft chamber) 
his glance lit one morning upon the rosy, kindly face of the good step¬ 
mother.” Consider the picture thus presented of his boyhood life; 
of the crude surroundings of his early years. Here we realize that 
he was among the poorest of the ])oor boys of the backwoods type; 
that he lived as did the commonest of “the common people.” 




4 


Abraham Lincoln. 


His education was confined to attendance at the log school 
houses near his home, the whole period being less than one year, and 
as some authorities state, only a few months. 

As he advanced in years his employments were those of a wood- 
chopper, an ordinary farm hand; and for a while a boatman on the 
Mississippi; but after he became of age he was more ambitious. He 
studied law, and gave his attention to politics, and was elected to the 
Legislature when he was twenty-five years old. 

I have thus briefiy alluded to his earlier life. My purpose chiefly, 
is to deal with his maturer years and his career of eminence and na¬ 
tional import. 

Continuing in politics, Mr. Lincoln was elected to Congress in 
1846, and he took a prominent part as a candidate for the Senate of 
the United States, for the vice-presidential nomination, and as head 
of the electoral ticket during the ensuing ten years. He had now be¬ 
come a leading debater on the stump and was acquiring a national 
reputation, which the fame of his great joint discussion with Stephen 
A. Douglas in 1858 permanently secured. 

I was present with thousands of interested auditors at one of 
these great debates. The contrast between the contestants was re¬ 
markable. Each in a different way, possessed physical and mental 
traits that rendered him conspicuous above the average man. Phys¬ 
ically they were as widely separated as comparison would suggest. 
Lincoln, very tall and angular, with methodical and deliberate speech, 
depended on forceful logic and the effect of plain truths plainly 
stated. His arguments appealed strongly to plain people. 

Douglas, quite a short and stout man with a powerful, resonant 
bass voice that could be distinctly heard by every one in the vast 
assemblage, was a fiery and impetuous speaker, and was quick to 
seize a plausible argument and drive it into men’s comprehension 
with sledge hammer blows. Each had his enthusiastic adherents 
and the excitement was continuous throughout the struggle between 
these forensic giants. To the immortal credit of Douglas, Avhen the 
time of trouble came, he bravely faced the storm of secession and 
warmly supported his old antagonist, publishing far and wide his 
noted saying, “In this crisis there can be only two parties, patriots 
and traitors.” 

This notable debate brought Lincoln to the front for the Presi¬ 
dential nomination by the Republican party in 1860, in which he 
succeeded, and his election to the Presidency followed. 

It was my good fortune to be in Springfield on the day when Mr. 
Lincoln left for Washington, February 11, 1861. It was quite early in 
the morning, when by chance I made one of a small crowd that wit- 


Abraham Lincoln. 


6 


nessed his departure. Standing- near him, as he stepped upon the 
platform of the car, I heard him deliver that pathetic farewell speech, 
which, little appreciated as it was at the time, became so famous 
afterward. Nothing could be more touching and tender than his 
reference to the lost child whose grave he was leaving — separating 
himself from that little mound, as he did from all the good neigh¬ 
bors and kind friends to whom he was endeared by long association. 

Feeling keenly the responsibilities of his position he said: “I 
go to assume a task more ditlicult than that which devolved upon 
Washington.” How prophetically did he speak of the great trials in 
store for him! 

On my return to the hotel, I told some members of the Legisla¬ 
ture, then in session, several of whom became prominent afterward 
in national affairs, of my having heard Mr. Lincoln’s parting speech, 
and what he said. They were disposed, even his party associates, to 
make light of ins grave fears, and his opponents ridiculed the idea 
that he had before him as difficult a task as was imposed upon 
Washington. How little did they appreciate the crisis. How blind 
they were to the coming horrors of the great war in wliich we were 
so soon involved. 

This hurried sketch of Mr. Lincoln’s history brings us to the 
threshold of the great important era of his life; and here commences 
a trying experience as full of the worry of dangerous and critical 
situations as any public man has ever encountered. 

I do not know of any portion of Mr. Lincoln’s career which so 
awakens a deep interest in him; which so appeals to our sym¬ 
pathy— not even the sad story of his martyred death, for then 
he was beyond the reach of suffering — as does that period of in¬ 
tense mental strain for two months following his inauguration. 
He had seized the helm when the good ship of state was drifting 
upon rocks of treachery. He was alone in the midst of his great 
trials — almost without a strong friend in Washington—with spies 
and schemers and open enemies swarming about him. There was 
scarcely a single Union musket or saber to defend the Capital. Men 
of the South were threatening and defiant, and the Border States 
trembling in the balance. With a constant menace that the Capital 
would fall into the enemy’s hands and the cause of liberty receive its 
death blow at the very beginning of the struggle, can we conceive of 
a deeper degree of care and solicitude than bore its heavy hand upon 
Abraham Lincoln in the supreme hour of his life? Times there 
were thereafter in the anxious moments of undecided battle, in the 
issue of hazardous campaigns, in the difficulties engendered by jealous 
officers, in the thousand exigencies of war, that sorely tried Lin¬ 
coln’s faith and spirit and courage. But he never faltered in his 


0 


Abraham Lincoln. 


confidence in ultimate victory after the people of the North were 
once fairly aroused and the march of blue legions to the front in 
countless thousands convinced him of tlie unyielding patriotism’ of 
the loyal States. 

Until recent history has enlightened them, the American peo¬ 
ple have not realized what a debt of gratitude they owe Lincoln. 
How their salvation rested in the exercise of his keen knowledge of 
human nature in dealing with individuals, and his grand wisdom in 
liandling the gravest and most intricate matters of governmental 
policy. It would demand a volume’s space to enlarge upon the de¬ 
tails of that magnificent battle which he fought for American liberty, 
almost single-handed and with little support but his own native tact 
and talent, and his grand courage, in the dark hours of March and 
April, 1861. 

Moving further along in the path of history we find the same 
unexampled wisdom in the management of the border State ques¬ 
tion which was of such serious import in the early days of the war. 
In the course of time, as his wise judgment dictated was the oppor¬ 
tune moment, he issued his great Proclamation of Emancipation, 
freeing millions of slaves and causing a thrill of joy and liope in the 
hearts of a down-trodden race. 

Time will not permit me to follow Lincoln’s career throughout 
the war, or to attempt even a summary of the many critical periods 
of that momentous struggle, in which he was always at the front 
with the firm hand, to do the best, as his wisdom directed, and to 
shape the tide of events, that victory came at last. What a sad 
thought it is that he never realized the fruition of his triumph; that 
ere the echoes of the victorious drums and the joyful notes of ex 
ultant bugles, celebrating the fall of treason, and the ascendency of 
the old flag, had died away, his spirit had taken its departure to 
the world beyond. Yet, who can tell? May not his spiritual eye, 
calm and placid and tender, as with mortal vision in the days on 
earth, have looked down in quiet satisfaction on the strife ended — 
the peace secured — the victory won? 

The character and disposition of Abraham Lincoln have been 
the theme of many a pen and many a household story. Endowed as 
he was by nature with great strength of intellect, enabling him to 
take no second position among the best and most cultivated minds 
of America, yet it was his warm and sympathetic heart, his kindly 
and genial disposition, his homely wit and innocent humor, his 
humanity, his consideration for others, that endeared him to his 
countrymen. 

A Springfield friend of Lincoln’s told me the following story of 
him, which is grandly characteristic of the man: In the most trying 


Abraham Lincoln. 


/ 


(lays of the war be was strolling down Pennsylvania Avenue one 
evening in company with one of his old and intimate friends from 
Illinois. Lincoln was somewhat anxious and depressed, for there 
appeared at times a strange melancholic vein in his temperament. 
He felt grievously the overpowering responsibilty of his position, 
and some special care of the moment rested oppressively upon his 
mind. The two friends walked slowly along in silence, when sud¬ 
denly a man stepped* in front of the President, and presenting a 
paper, said: “Mr. Lincoln, this is the only opportunity I have had 
to speak to you; please consider my case. I —” Here Mr. Lincoln 
interrupted him impatiently, and said: “My man, don’t annoy me 
in this way; I have too much to think of; you must let me alone,” 
and passed on with his companion, leaving the applicant standing 
dejectedly on the sidewalk. The two friends walked a short dis¬ 
tance without speaking, when suddenly Mr. Lincoln stopped and 
said: “.John, I treated that man shamefully; I must go back aud 
see him.” And he at once turned and walked up to the petitioner, 
who had remained in his despondent attitude. “My friend,” said 
Mr. Lincoln, “I was rude to you just now; I ask your pardon. I 
have a great deal to worry and trouble me at this time, but I had no 
right to treat you so uncivilly. Take this card, and come to my office 
in the morning, and I will do what I can for you. Good night.” And 
he rejoined his friend to resume his melancholy manner, and silently 
they walked on as before. 

His practical wit was often shown, and I will (j[uote a recently 
told illustration of it. On one occasion, as he passed through an 
assemblage, a rough fellow remarked : “There goes a common look¬ 
ing man.” Lincoln stopped, and turning around, said, (piietly: “My 
friend, the Lord loves common looking people; that’s the reason he 
made so many of them.” 

One day, in 1862, a gentleman from some Northern city entered 
Mr. Lincoln’s private office, and earnestly reciuested a pass to Rich¬ 
mond. “A pass to Richmond!” exclaimed the President. “Why, 
my dear sir, if I gave you one it would do you no good. You may 
think it very strange, but there is a lc)t of fellows between here and 
Richmond who either can’t read or are prejudiced against every 
man who comes from me. I have given McClellan, and more than 
200,000 others, permission to go into Richmond, and not a single one 
of ’em has got there yet.” 

Multitudes of anecdotes are told of his leniency to his enemies, 
his inclination to pardon deserters, and those who had been con¬ 
demned by court martial for grave offenses. His general officers 
and associates, especially the iron-willed Stanton, were sometimes 
impatient with him for what they claimed was a mistaken policy. 


Abraham Lincoln. 


an unwise over-ruling of authority subversive of discipline. A typi¬ 
cal instance was that of a young soldier who was condemned to be 
shot for sleeping on his post. Mr. Lincoln pardoned him and in 
doing so said: What can you expect from a young fellow like that? 
He was probably raised a farmer’s boy, accustomed to going to bed 
early and needing plenty of rest, and 1 will never consent to his exe¬ 
cution for such on offense.” It is reported that the dead body of this 
same young soldier was found on the bloody field of Fredericksburg 
and that under his vest suspended by a ribbon around his neck, was 
apliotograph of the one who had saved him from an inglorious death, 
and upon it he had written, ‘'God bless President Lincoln.” 

Safely could Abraham Lincoln rest upon that appeal to the dis¬ 
poser of all—“That mercy I to others show, that mercy show to me.” 
Yet he could be firm when decision was required, and never did he 
urge any other than the most vigorous prosecution of the war. 

But Jiis heart went out in sympathy for all suffering and dis¬ 
tress. He was intolerant only of the meaner vices of men. Ingrat¬ 
itude and hypocrisy and deceit and falsehood—intolerant in that his 
nobler nature comdemned them; and yet he was never known to 
show vindictiveness toward any one, and when ill-treated, would 
rather ignore the insult than resent it. He seemed to be almost dis¬ 
tinct from others in this respect; he subordinated all personal con¬ 
siderations to the grand purpose of his country’s welfare, he allowed 
no petty feeling of anger or selfishness, or pride of position, to stand 
in the way of wisely meeting his great responsibilities. Calmly and 
steadily he moved along the path of duty, undisturbed by the trifles 
that annoy and irritate the generality of mankind. 

It seemed to be one of the peculiar features of Abraham Lin¬ 
coln’s thought and expression, that while his oratory may not attract 
attention when uttered, it finds appreciation and compels admira¬ 
tion as time passes, and men reflect about it and study it. The ad¬ 
dress at Gettysburg is a case in point. When made, it was not real¬ 
ized that a grand production had been given to the world. Now, it 
shines as a gem in the English language. In eloquent pathos and 
tender beauty of sentiment, it is one of the noblest efforts of the 
orator. The singular beauty and power of the conclusion of this re¬ 
markable address, which can hardly be too often repeated, has given 
it a world wide fame: 

“Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth upon 
this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated 
to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are 
engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any 
nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met 
upon a great battlefield of that war. We are met to dedicate a por¬ 
tion of it as the final resting place of those who have given their 


Abraham Lincoln. 


9 


lives that that nation mip^ht live. It is altogether fitting anti proper 
that we should do this. But in a large sense we cannot dedicate, we 
cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, 
living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above 
our power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long re¬ 
member what we say here, but it can never forget what they did 
here. It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to the un¬ 
finished work that they have thus far so nobly carried on. It is 
rather for us to be her.e dedicated to the great task remaining before 
us; that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to the 
cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion; that 
we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain; 
that the nation shall, under God, have a new birth of freedom, and 
that government of the people, by the people, and for the people, 
shall not perish from the earth.” 

The recent war, in which our country has achieved so complete a 
victory, imposes upon us duties and responsibilities not dreamed of 
even a short time since. Yet may we not, in considering the start¬ 
ling change which has taken place in our position among the nations, 
recall the memorable words uttered at Gettysburg? May we not 
apply them to the profound obligations resting upon America in her 
new field of action as the champion of freedom, justice and good 
government for the people of the West India Islands and the Philip¬ 
pines? Are we to shrink from our accountability to the world and 
our duty to a mixed population of unenlightened people in the Pacific 
Islands because a treacherous tribe—a small minority of the in¬ 
habitants— led by unscrupulous adventurers, has assaulted the flag, 
attacked our soldiers, and resists our lawful authority? 

We cannot in honor strike our flag in the face of unprovoked 
and armed opposition. First, let us suppress this uncalled for rebel¬ 
lion ; then restore peace and order and enforce a regard for law; 
plant the little school houses and Christian churclies upon the hills 
and plains of Luzon; begin an education of the people in the ways 
of goed government, that they may be able to learn, if need be, how 
to maintain a republic if one be established, and when the accepted 
time comes, as it may soon come, the teacher and the preacher and 
the men active in the pursuits of peace will follow the soldier. We 
may well hope a nation will be created from the numerous tribes of 
the Philippines and a new foothold for liberty and progress be estab¬ 
lished, carrying influences for good to the far-away regions of the 
Asiatic world. 

Are we to shirk the burden of responsibility which rests upon us 
by the march of events in God’s providential ways? Should not 
the American people ‘‘highly resolve” that our dead soldiers of the 
Spanish war and the conflict in the Philippines shall not have died 
in vain? Let the grand words of Abraham Lincoln answer in para- 


10 


Abraham Lincoln. 


phrase: ‘^This nation, under God, shall have a new allotment of 
duty, and g“overnment of the people, by the people, and for the 
people, shall be extended to the uttermost parts of the earth.” 

Never was a man less understood, except by his intimates, than 
was Abraham Lincoln. He was a problem to Eastern men especially, 
unused as they were to the manner and expression that cliaracter- 
ized the typical Western man of early days. Visitors were some¬ 
times disappointed at what seemed to them disagreeable peculiari¬ 
ties; surprised at a jocularity incompatible with his high station, as 
they thought, and wondering at the lack of a stately dignity which 
had always been associated with the office of President. Then he 
was villified by continuous slander and misrepresentation; numbers 
of stories, such as no one should wish to repeat, were attributed to 
him, of which he was innocent. 

Abraham Lincoln was a pure man; his life and habits are evi¬ 
dence of that; and a rough joke with him was never emphasized 
except for its point. Its mission was to drive home some truth of 
argument or belief. To this, he had from youth been accustomed. 

There were no newspapers in the remote country neighborhood 
where he passed his earlier years, and very few books. Social 
amusements or entertainments were rare, and the chief resource of 
the men folk was to gather at the country store or blacksmith shop 
and talk of politics or happenings of the vicinity, or such scanty 
general news as could be obtained. Here the habit of story telling 
was acquired by Lincoln, and he became a veritable store-house of 
apt illustrations and rough diamond wit. The i)ractice of reproduc¬ 
ing some appropriate humorous story was ever afterwards a safety 
valve to relieve him of the pressure of official anxiety and care. 

One of the best tributes to Lincoln, and one of the most deserved 
portrayals of his charecter, emanates from Emerson: 

“A plain man of the people, an extraordinary fortune attended 
him. He ottered no shining qualities at the first encounter; he did 
not offend by superiority. He had a face and manner which dis¬ 
armed suspicion, which 'inspired confidence, which confirmed good 
will. He was a man without vices. He had a strong sense of duty, 
which it was very easy for him to obey. Then he had what farmers 
call a dong head’; was excellent in working out the sum for him¬ 
self, in arguing his case and convincing you fairly and firmly. He 
had a vast good nature, which made him tolerant and accessible to 
all. Then his broad, good humor, running easily into jocular talk, in 
which he delighted and in which he excelled, was a rich gift to this 
wise man. It enabled him to keep his secret, to meet every kind of 
man, and every rank in society; to mask his own purpose and to 
sound his companion, and to catch with true instinct the temper of 
every company he addressed. His occupying the chair of state was 
a triumph of the good sense of mankind and of the public conscience. 
This middle class country had gotten a middle class President at 


Abraham Lincoln, 


11 


last. Yes, in manner and sympathies, but not in powers, for his 
powers were superior. This man grew according to the need; his 
mind mastered the problem of the day, and as the problem grew so 
did his comprehension of it. Rarely w^as a man so fitted to the 
event. It cannot be said that there is any exaggeration of his worth. 
If ever a man was fairly tested, he was. There was no lack of resist¬ 
ance— no, nor of slander, nor of ridicule. Then what an occasion was 
the whirlwind of the war! Here was a place for no holiday magis¬ 
trate, no fair-weather sailor. The new pilot was hurried to the 
helm in a tornado. In four years—four years of battle days, his en¬ 
durance, his fertility of resources, his magnanimity were soVely tried, 
and never found wanting. There, by his courage, his justice, his 
even temper, his fertile council, his humanity, he stood — a heroic 
figure in the center of a heroic epoch.” 

The intense strain burdening his mind and spirits he endured 
almost throughout his entire term of office. It told upon him severely. 
There were times when his old friends were shocked with the change 
in his appearance. They had known him at his home and in the 
courts of ‘Illinois, with a frame of iron and nerves of steel, as a man 
who hardly knew what illness was. ISiow they saw the wrinkles on 
his face deepen into furrows as anxiety, responsibility, and care and 
the injustice of friends wore upon and distressed him. He said one 
day: ‘H feel as though I shall never be glad again.” On another 
occasion, after some bad news had come, he said; “How willingly 
would I exchange places with the soldier who sleeps on the ground 
in the army of the Potomac.” 

From Whittier, we have these lines: 

“The weary form that rested not 
Save In a martyr’s grave: 

The careworn face that none forgot. 

Turned to the kneeling slave. 

“We rest In peace where his sad eyes. 

Saw peril, strife and pain: 

His was the awful sacrifice, 

And ours the priceless gain.” 

More than a third of a century has passed, my companions, since 
he who occupies our thought to-night was hurried into the life beyond 
by the hand of a wretched assassin. We may well take pride in the 
fact that he was our contemporary —that we were privileged to par¬ 
ticipate in the same struggle that engrossed his whole being, and it 
is for us, as time passes, to meet and often recall his memory — 
refresh our recollection of his grand achievements for his country, 
and remember that, civilian though he was, his was a soldier’s 
patriotism, his was a bloody death, as dies the soldier in the hot 
rush of battle. 

True to his country in her deepest need with service beyond all 
estimation, giving all that man could give in her behalf, what laurel 


12 


Abraham Lincoln. 


crowned chieftain deserves a richer chaplet? What victorious hero, 
glittering in the fiomp and circumstance of war, has greater honors 
and reward? 

The slave, freed from his bondage, blesses the name of Lincoln,^ 
as he sees his children and children’s children growing up in the 
light of civilization and education and progress; the artisan in his 
thrifty home, the farmer looking over his laughing harvests, the 
patriotic citizen as he sees proudly waving the old flag, supreme and 
undisputed from ocean to ocean, from the Lakes to the Gulf— all be¬ 
stow a benediction upon that noble American who made these bless¬ 
ings possible. 

A grateful country cherishes his memory with an affection and 
admiration which deepen and strengthen as the years go by. 

“For though his golden sun has set, 

Its light shall linger, ’round us yet 
Bright, radiant, blest.” 


/ 



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